Dining: Pho-Hiep Hoa
Pho-Hiep Hoa is the underachieving brat among downtown Silver Spring’s restaurants. It barely meets standards but is truly capable of so much more.
Vietnamese garden rolls ($4.95 for two pieces) arrive as cigar-shaped bundles of pink shrimp, thin rice noodles and scallions in a cellophane-thin rice wrapper. The shrimp in this cold appetizer is taut and fresh, but the garden roll as a whole lacks the traditional sharp bite of mint and cilantro.
The accompanying dipping sauce contributes a salty soy-sauce flavor and can’t save the garden rolls from mediocrety.
On the rebound, the chicken with lemongrass ($9.95) balances a sweet brown sauce with bold garlic, tart lemongrass, and just a touch of heat from ginger and chili pepper. The thinly sliced chicken breast is tough from overcooking but offers enough resistance to the sauce and accompanying soft jasmine rice.
The evening special–grilled lamb chops with curry sauce–looks more like thinly sliced, sauteed beef. (At the time of consumption, the reviewer couldn’t remember what was ordered. Days later, a scan of the bill revealed a $12.95 charge for lamb chops. A beef dish presumably would have cost less.)
The lamb-beef-whatever is overcooked, but its yellow curry sauce is smooth and sweet with coconut milk. It also has a subversive heat from ginger, cinnamon and chili pepper.
The restaurant’s namesake pho noodle soup (pronounced “fuh” as in “fuhgetboudit”) is a vat of weak broth, rice noodles, vegetables and meat or tofu. Cilantro and bean sprouts come with each order but can’t do enough to season the soup.
The dining room is clean but dimly lit, and the decor looks more like Shanghai than Saigon. The management’s choice of music also seems out of place. (Led Zep’s “Stairway to Heaven” is a classic, but it doesn’t go well with soup.)
The servers operate at two speeds: lightening fast when the place is empty; sloooooow when the room is full.
Pho-Hiep Hoa, 921-G Ellsworth Dr, Silver Spring, (301) 588-5808
Originally published Jan 24, 2007.
I totally agree with this review. The service seem horribly slow even when it’s NOT busy. I’m Vietnamese, and I was looking forward to the opening of this place, but it pales in comparison to other Pho places. I did see a sign for another Pho restaurant in the White Oak Shopping Plaza. Hopefully this one will be much better.
Agreed with Jennifer and Anonymous. The missus and I were really looking forward to a Vietnamese joint on Ellsworth, but this place disappointed all the way around: food, service, decor, music. Meh. The only thing I remember liking is the 33 beer.
Can anyone recommend a really good Vietnamese restaurant in the area?
Pho An in White Oak is a little better than Pho-Hiep Hoa, but still mediocre.
I won’t go back to Pho-Hiep Hoa in DTSS b/c last time I went there a small cockroach decided to visit my table…
I will drive all the way to Cleveland Park to have Pho at Nam Viet. Spicy Hue beef noodle soup. Yum.
Seriously– Why go to Pho-Hiep Hoa when you can head a little south in Silver Spring & go to My Le? (At least once they open back up after their unfortunate fire!)
M, My Le is okay, but interior decor does count for something in a dining experience, and My Le’s decor can be summed up in one word: shabby.
I don’t want to eat in a depressing environment. Hopefully My Le will take the opportunity of recovering from their fire and spruce things up.
I don’t get out much with restaurants. What is Vietnamese cuisine like? Is it spicy? Mostly noodle dishes? I am not a big fan of Thai meals. I can’t handle spicy food well and I need to watch my carb in-take with noodles and white rice.
About Vietnamese-American food:
The pho (noodle) soups consist of a clear broth with a hit of star anise (think licorice) and sometimes cinnamon. One usually drops crisp mung bean sprouts and bright cilantro into the mix. And there’s often some meat (or tofu) and noodles, of course.
The curries are similar to those found in Thai-American cuisine: spicy and often mixed with a creamy (read: high-calorie) coconut milk-based sauce.
Sligo, of Silver Spring Singular, recently wrote about his experience at White Oak’s Pho An.
I completely disagree with this review and all comments. I didn’t go to this restaurant for the decor or the music, frankly I don’t even remember it because the food was so good and I was in conversation. I ordered the spring rolls and sesame chicken, and I thought it was great. The chicken was cooked perfectly. I wasn’t expecting much from this restaurant, but I will definitely be going back because my expectations were greatly surpassed. The service was pretty good, and the food came very quickly. Can’t wait to go back!
Editor’s note: This reader’s screen name has been modified. — JD (Jun 2, 2008)